Spain Entrepreneur Visa Requirements, Application Steps, and Types

A Spain entrepreneur visa allows you to enter the country and stay long-term to start your own business, expand your current business, or take over another business already established in the country.

Who Needs an Entrepreneur Visa to Spain?

You need to apply for a Spain entrepreneur visa if you are a non-EU/EEA/Swiss citizen and your home country does not have a visa-free agreement with Spain. In this case, you must obtain the visa from your country of residence before traveling to Spain.

If your country does have a visa-free agreement with Spain, you may enter Spain without a visa (for up to 90 days), and then apply for the entrepreneur residence permit directly from within Spain.

How to Apply for a Spain Entrepreneur Visa?

Here’s how the application process goes for an entrepreneur visa to Spain:

1. Fill out the application form. You need to fill out a long-stay visa application form (D-type), which you can find on the website of a Spanish embassy/consulate in your country or the nearest you. Follow the instructions on the form, and make sure to provide accurate information and sign it at the end.
2. Schedule a visa appointment. Find the nearest Spanish consulate or embassy here, and set up a visa appointment to submit your application. Please make sure you schedule your appointment a minimum of a month before your planned arrival in Spain.
3. Assemble the required documents. It’s required that you also submit a list of documents such as your passport, proof of financial means, business plan, and such (see a full list below). You must make sure that all the documents you submit are up to date and, if required, accompanied by a certified translation.
4. Submit your application. You must submit your application on the day of your visa appointment. The consular agents may also ask you to sit down for a short interview to understand your reasons for wanting to obtain an entrepreneur visa.
5. Retrieve your visa. Once your application is approved, you have 1 month to pick up your passport and visa at the embassy/consulate. You will be notified of their decision, and when and how to pick up your visa.

Obtain a Report from ENISA

Please note that before starting your application, you must first get a favorable report for your business from ENISA (Empresa Nacional de Innovación), a Spanish government agency that supports innovative businesses.

The reason why you have to do this before you initiate your application process is that you need to submit the report as part of the application documents.

Here’s how you can go about it:

1. Prepare your business plan, which must detail everything about its operation, its profit expectations, economic benefits to Spain, and so on.
2. Submit your plan to UGE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos), Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit online here.
3. Your case is then forwarded to ENISA.
4. Once approved by ENISA, it’s sent back to UGE, and then back to you, so you can attach a copy of it to your application.

Please note that most applicants prefer to work with a legal consultant to help them through this process. Especially because you need a digital certificate to submit your plan to UGE, plus most of the process is done in Spanish, so you would benefit from an advisor helping you.

Required Documents

You must prepare the following documents for your Spain entrepreneur visa application:

• A valid passport issued in the last ten years.
• National D visa application form.
• Passport-sized photographs.
• Proof of paid visa fee.
• A favorable report from ENISA.
• A detailed business plan.
• Proof of financial means.
• A clear police certificate from each country you’ve lived in the last 5 years.
• Health insurance certificate.

After Entering Spain

Once you enter the country with your entrepreneur visa, there are a few other immigration procedures you must complete to finalize your stay in the country:

• Obtain your Foreigner Identity Card (tarjeta de identidad de extranjero—TIE). You have to complete this process within a month of arriving in the country. You can do this at a local Foreigners’ Office here or a police station.
• Register with your local municipality. Then, you have to complete a process known as ‘padron’ at your local municipality offices, which you can find here. It’s a simple step, but it’s important—it proves where you live and is needed for things like setting up healthcare, enrolling kids in school, or renewing your residency later on.

Frequently Asked Questions